Sixty-one passengers and crew on board a Bangalore-bound Indian Airlines flight at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai had a narrow escape when the commander detected a technical snag just before take off.

While returning to the bay, the nosewheel of the aircraft ran into soft ground.

No one was injured in the incident, which happened at around 1745 IST.

Passengers were safely off-loaded and taken to the terminal building and were sent to their destination in another aircraft, an IA official said.

Initial investigations revealed that the commander had some 'manouverability' problem with the aircraft and hence decided to return to the bay when the aircraft's nosewheel ran into soft ground.

Several incoming and outgoing flights were delayed even though the Airports Authority of India opened the secondary runway (14-32) within ten minutes of the incident, an airport official said.

At least two international incoming flights, which had aligned themselves for the main runway, had to go around beforecoming in to land on the secondary runway.

When this report was filed, efforts were on to tow the aircraft back to the hangar.